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ALBERT accepted his late-night summons to the prime minister’s office without complaint. Thus, he knocked on Reynaldo’s door. A short time passed with no response. Finding this strange, Albert opened the door slowly, and inside, Reynaldo was sleeping with his elbows on his desk.
It was unusual for Reynaldo to sleep without noticing a newcomer’s presence. To Albert’s knowledge, he tended to wake at the slightest sound. He wasn’t the sort to let others be close to him, after all. Since he hadn’t woken at Albert’s entrance, he must have been exhausted. Or perhaps there was another reason.
Finally, the sound of the door closing woke Reynaldo. He looked at Albert, his features drowsy.
“Was I sleeping?” he asked. “Sorry for calling you here so late.”
“No worries. It looks like you needed the rest.”
“Yes, I suppose so. I’ve had a bit too much on my plate lately.”
Reynaldo stretched to drive away his exhaustion. Albert smiled at him. Whenever Reynaldo held late-night meetings in the past, he always moved around to drive away his fatigue. To Albert’s recollection, Reynaldo had always been sleep-deprived.
Whenever we met in secret to plot our revenge, it was often in the evening, Albert recalled.
“It’s been a while since we met this late,” Reynaldo noted.
Apparently, he’d been thinking the same thing.
“Indeed, it has,” Albert agreed.
“Back then, you were a low-ranking knight, and I was just a boy.”
How did twenty years come and go so quickly? Albert wondered, the all-too-rapid passage of time baffling him.
After swearing vengeance upon Rosemary’s killers, Reynaldo and Albert spent years discussing how best to achieve it. Though they clashed at times, their goal was fulfilled in a most unexpected way. As a result, Albert only had one regret: their inability to locate and punish Tia.
Reynaldo was searching for Tia with bloodshot eyes. No one knew how she’d slipped out of the castle on the day of the coup. Questioning the former king hadn’t provided any answers either. Even he didn’t know how the queen had disappeared.
Regardless of whether she’d successfully fled the castle, finding a single woman should have been easy. However, the situation had proven more fraught with difficulties than expected. This suggested the existence of co-conspirators. Someone was cooperating with and sheltering the queen. That was the main reason Reynaldo was overworking. Though he’d investigated Tia’s associates, no one in the capital had enough power to hide her. In that case, she must have been relying on foreign collaborators.
The idea of their former queen possibly joining forces with a foreign entity came as a tremendous blow to the country. King Rizel was troubled by his mother’s actions as well. As the leader of their country, he lamented being unable to extend her any kindness. Though Rizel felt little love for Tia, she was still his mother. He would probably wish to reduce her punishment in the event of her capture. Unfortunately, if she’d joined forces with a foreign country, he wouldn’t be allowed to do so.
While Albert wanted to capture Tia as soon as possible, he didn’t feel the same desire for vengeance as before. Mary had purged that darkness from his heart during King Grey’s condemnation. Albert wished to live as a knight, not as a man hell-bent on revenge. And so, as Mary’s protector, he wished to punish Tia justly.
“Albert,” Reynaldo said.
Though Albert had been deep in thought, he lifted his head upon hearing his name.
“Did you profess your feelings to Mary?” Reynaldo asked with a piercing gaze.
Albert nodded honestly, seeing as Reynaldo probably knew the truth already. “… I did.”
Initially, Albert proposed to Mary in a most disappointing fashion. While lamenting his idiocy, the meddlesome Sir Eva offered to help him. As a result, he later professed his actual feelings to Mary.
Even so, his anxieties remained, as the more he proclaimed his love for her, the more tense her expression grew. At first, he found her embarrassment adorable, but lately, she stopped blushing as she once had. Instead, she wore a different expression. Albert didn’t understand the reason behind this change. That frustrated him. If he’d caused her discomfort, he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself. When he considered that his professions might be a nuisance, he couldn’t even bring himself to ask for clarification.
Albert was growing increasingly frustrated with himself. He wanted to love and protect Mary, but he hated himself for stealing the smile from her face. Every day, he wondered if repressing his feelings would be preferable, and every day, he concluded that was impossible.
“I never would have expected you to act so rashly,” Reynaldo commented. “You must be desperate.”
The humor in Reynaldo’s tone annoyed Albert. Though he silently waited for Reynaldo to continue, the new prime minister said nothing else.
Impatience got the better of him. Albert opened his mouth to ask a question. “And what will you do?”
Will you stand by and watch, or will you tell her your feelings as well?
Reynaldo’s romantic feelings for Mary were as plain as day. After King Grey was arrested, Albert expected Reynaldo to act, but in an unexpected turn of events, he’d done nothing.
Secretly, Reynaldo took precautions to prevent Mary from becoming a political pawn, including the falsification of her identity. Of course, he’d taken these actions after consulting with Stanley, her current guardian. As always, Reynaldo’s ability to take the initiative was laudable.
Because of this, Albert found it strange that Reynaldo hadn’t taken the same actions as him. When Sir Eva suggested letting Mary work for the chivalric order, Albert expected Reynaldo to block her transfer. However, the matter proceeded without difficulty. Almost anticlimactically.
As the high commander, Albert could approve any servant to work for his order. Yet, even with Mary working for him, Albert worried about Reynaldo stealing her from him someday, as he’d done when taking her to Rose. Albert even considered what he would do if that occurred. Considering all this, Reynaldo’s behavior was strange, compelling him to ask the question.
What will you do?
“I won’t do anything,” Reynaldo answered.
His jade eyes—the same color as Rosemary’s—stared directly at Albert. Previously, revenge had darkened his eyes. Now, they’d taken on a more peaceful hue.
“What do you mean?” Albert asked.
“I mean exactly what I said,” Reynaldo replied.
He won’t do anything? Albert wondered. This from Reynaldo, who loved Rosemary with all his heart and lived solely for her sake?
Upon seeing Albert rattled, Reynaldo smiled at him coolly. “If Mary falls in love with you, I’m fine with that. However…” As Reynaldo approached Albert, he wore the smile that had earned him the moniker “Ice Duke”. He placed a long, slender finger on Albert’s shoulder. “Mary won’t reciprocate your feelings unless you change.”
He spoke and acted as if he knew Mary’s emotional state. Albert wanted to argue, but he couldn’t find the words. Reynaldo spoke the truth. Albert knew that Mary wouldn’t reciprocate his feelings as things currently stood. Even so, he didn’t know how to change it. After hearing this from a third party, Albert’s anxieties redoubled their assault on him.
“I understand,” Albert said. “But it’s too early to roll over and accept that.”
Resignation hadn’t filled his eyes with dejection. Neither were they twisted in agony. Rather, he stared back at Reynaldo with determination.
You think I would give up so easily?
Not even Albert could suppress the whirlpool of emotions raging inside him. Despite having been rejected, he couldn’t raise the white flag of surrender. He would seize any opportunity to win Mary’s heart. Likewise, he would clear away her concerns. If his feelings had intensified her anxieties, he would quash them. He would do anything to protect her.
Reynaldo donned a gentle smile at Albert’s steely resolve. “Well, then, I look forward to your next move.”
Albert couldn’t fathom what Reynaldo was thinking. The man was his enemy in love, but the so-called Ice Duke seemed to be supporting him. He didn’t understand why.
Regardless, Albert needed to consider other factors and resolve his own worries. When he found the answers to his concerns, he would find them concerning Mary. He was vaguely certain of this.